The military has decided to deny scientists data on incoming meteors in
order to protect military secrets. Anyone who can't see any problems
with this arrangement, well done on never having seen a movie -ever.
Oh, and get Michael Bay on the phone - we've got his next plot ready.

The
Air Force's Defense Support Program satellite network scans the globes
for infra-red signatures (indicative of missile blasts and nuclear
explosions) and incidentally picks up incredibly detailed information
on all meteors which hit the planet. Something the military didn't
think was particularly interesting. They did at least send the
occasional update to the Earth-watching scientific community, scraps of
data they didn't need, but a recent announcement makes it clear that
there will be no more.

The most likely reason is an upgrade to the satellite defense
network, with the top brass believing that any risk of revealing the
capabilities of the new system is unacceptable. The worst thing is
that it isn't really secrecy that's stopping the data transfer, but
miserliness. It's the work of moments to boil out any unwanted
information revealed by records of meteor strikes, but with their
hundred-billion dollar budget the USAF just doesn't see the point in
hiring someone to do it. That would be money with absolutely no
ability to kill people, after all, and paltry little things like "using
the most advanced satellite network in existence to further our
understanding of the universe" isn't going to blow anybody up either.

They're
literally throwing out incredible data because they can't be bothered
to keep it. This is everything that's wrong with human ambition right
here.

Comments

Seriously, are you that foolish?

>> That would be money with absolutely no ability to kill people, after all, and paltry little things like "using the most advanced satellite network in existence to further our understanding of the universe" isn't going to blow anybody up either.

Since monitoring scary people like the NK and Iranians doesn't blow people up but just might save, oh, YOU and your family I have no idea where this comes from.

>> They're literally throwing out incredible data because they can't be bothered to keep it. This is everything that's wrong with human ambition right here.

Did their explanation about exposing the capabilities of our military satellites not make sense to you? And it has nothing to do with ambition. I have no idea where that came from.

I should hope that this data can be retrieved from other governments. It's a shame that the US Government wants to put violence before understanding. As a former military man myself I can understand not wanting to give away secrets, but not giving anything at all is short sighted.
It's a bit odd that the modern military is shutting out the same scientists that gave birth to it's current might.